This description generally relates to surgical robotics, and particularly to a surgical drape for covering an instrument device manipulator of a surgical robotic system.
Robotic technologies have a range of applications. In particular, robotic arms help complete tasks that a human would normally perform. For example, factories use robotic arms to manufacture automobiles and consumer electronics products. Additionally, scientific facilities use robotic arms to automate laboratory procedures such as transporting microplates. In the medical field, physicians have started using robotic arms to help perform surgical procedures.
In a surgical robotic system, a robotic arm is connected to an instrument device manipulator, e.g., at the end of the robotic arm, and is capable of moving the instrument device manipulator into any position within a defined work space. The instrument device manipulator can be detachably coupled to a surgical tool, such as a steerable catheter for endoscopic applications or any of a variety of laparoscopic tools. The instrument device manipulator imparts motion from the robotic arm to control the position of the surgical tool, and it may also activate controls on the tool, such as pull wires to steer a catheter. Additionally, the instrument device manipulator may be electrically and/or optically coupled to the tool to provide power, light, or control signals, and may receive data from the tool such as a video stream from a camera on the tool.
Before using the surgical robotic system in a clinic setting with a patient, portions of the system must be either sterile or draped to protect the sterile environment. While the surgical tool may be sterile and disposable, the robotic arm and instrument device manipulator are not and thus need to be draped to create a boundary between them and the surgical site. However, various configurations of the instrument device manipulator and tool present various challenges for draping the instrument device manipulator, such as providing electrical, optical, and other connections between the draped instrument device manipulator and the undraped tool. Additionally, since the tool may rotate relative to the instrument device manipulator, it is desirable to avoid tangling the drape when the tool is rotated.